WT Small House
Encyclopedia
.'WT Small House' is reputed to be the oldest continually inhabited home in Kelowna
, British Columbia
, Canada
. It is listed on the Kelowna Heritage Register as a highly valued example of early residential pioneer settlement in the Okanagan Valley.
The Home was constructed with adze
-cut squared logs and dovetail
joints on two story wood frame.
William Thomas Small , a blind miller at The Lequime Mill built the original portion of the house in 1890 with 3 of his sons, Fred, Charles and William. The field stone fire place in the parlour is carved with the year or construction '1890'. The house was sold in 1908 to James Hugh Baillie who added a two storey wood frame front in 1910. Ballie sold the house in 1918 to C. Graham, whose wife is reputed to have built the second field stone fire place in the sitting room. In 1930, the house was bought by Arthur H. Raymer (1880–1956) and his wife Edith Small, the daughter of WT Small (1884–1951) who had grown up in the house. Raymer became Kelowna's first mayor when the city was incorporated in 1905. Raymer's daughter, Hilda and her husband W Sinclair-Thompson lived there with their son & daughter Terry Gilbert and Wendy Edith. The Mulberry tree on the property was brought to Kelowna on a wagon from Ontario by William Small.
The heritage value of the building is characterised by the organic growth of more than a century from early pioneer vernacular architecture
to modern additions while retaining the original portions, still easily defined and recognisable today.
Small's wife was instrumental in founding the first school in the Mission Creek area in 1894. Six local families- Small, Casorso, Berard, Crawford, Dickson and Smith gathered to refurbish the old Fred Gillard cabin under the guidance of William Small, the only carpenter in the party, to provide the first school in the area for the eighteen local children. They were taught by Fred Watson until 1900 for the sum of $720 per year (Okanagan Historical Society).
Kelowna
Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley, in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its name derives from a Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear"...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is listed on the Kelowna Heritage Register as a highly valued example of early residential pioneer settlement in the Okanagan Valley.
The Home was constructed with adze
Adze
An adze is a tool used for smoothing or carving rough-cut wood in hand woodworking. Generally, the user stands astride a board or log and swings the adze downwards towards his feet, chipping off pieces of wood, moving backwards as they go and leaving a relatively smooth surface behind...
-cut squared logs and dovetail
Dovetail
Dovetail may refer to:* The dovetail joint used in woodworking* The dovetail or "riffle" method of shuffling playing cards* German equatorial mount, or dovetail plate, used to fix a telescope to its mount...
joints on two story wood frame.
William Thomas Small , a blind miller at The Lequime Mill built the original portion of the house in 1890 with 3 of his sons, Fred, Charles and William. The field stone fire place in the parlour is carved with the year or construction '1890'. The house was sold in 1908 to James Hugh Baillie who added a two storey wood frame front in 1910. Ballie sold the house in 1918 to C. Graham, whose wife is reputed to have built the second field stone fire place in the sitting room. In 1930, the house was bought by Arthur H. Raymer (1880–1956) and his wife Edith Small, the daughter of WT Small (1884–1951) who had grown up in the house. Raymer became Kelowna's first mayor when the city was incorporated in 1905. Raymer's daughter, Hilda and her husband W Sinclair-Thompson lived there with their son & daughter Terry Gilbert and Wendy Edith. The Mulberry tree on the property was brought to Kelowna on a wagon from Ontario by William Small.
The heritage value of the building is characterised by the organic growth of more than a century from early pioneer vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
to modern additions while retaining the original portions, still easily defined and recognisable today.
Small's wife was instrumental in founding the first school in the Mission Creek area in 1894. Six local families- Small, Casorso, Berard, Crawford, Dickson and Smith gathered to refurbish the old Fred Gillard cabin under the guidance of William Small, the only carpenter in the party, to provide the first school in the area for the eighteen local children. They were taught by Fred Watson until 1900 for the sum of $720 per year (Okanagan Historical Society).